Gah this is a tough choice. I'm an NJ resident so cost for RU would be better, but I would imagine Nova places a little better in Philadelphia, where I'd like to work. I'm gonna be racking my brain for a week now trying to decide....

Brackets are out. Did anyone else see Nantz and Packer acting like colossal douches on the selection show towards the head of the selection committee? Nantz completely cutting off the guy was quite unprofessional as well.

My thoughts on the brackets:

- UConn has the easiest path of all the #1 seeds. Tennessee is an extremely weak #2 seed (I think they could lose to Winthrop if they don't have their heads on straight) and UNC is probably too young and inexperienced to get to Indy, though I think they'll get to the Elite Eight.

- Duke probably has the toughest road to Indianapolis. GW in the second round is going to be tough if Pops Mensa-Bonsu is healthy(he'll own Shelden Williams, the kid is NBA-ready), LSU is going to be really tough as well in the Sweet 16 (Glen Davis is awesome, trust me) or they could get Syracuse, who is on a complete roll right now. Then the Elite Eight probably brings a rematch with Texas, who's likely a little peeved due to the 30-point blowout in December.

- I honestly do not know who is coming out of the Oakland regional. Memphis is the #1 seed but Bucknell could definitely take them in the second round. Gonzaga will do what they usually do when they're a high seed, lose early. I'm going to say UCLA comes out of that bracket.

- BC being pimped as a Final Four candidate annoys me, considering they've never gotten out of the first weekend of the tourney under Al Skinner. If Allan Ray is healthy, I think Nova can get to the Final Four. Nova-Georgetown in the Elite Eight would rock.

So I'm gonna venture a guess and say the Final Four will be UConn, Nova, Texas, and UCLA. Thoughts?

After watching them lose again tonight, would they have that good of a record if they played in the Big East this year? If they play like this in the tournament, they're going to be lucky to make the Sweet 16.

"Legislation focused on cracking down on the thriving business of online gambling was introduced in Congress this week to tighten existing laws that outlaw the practice in the U.S.

The Internet Gambling Prohibition Act, sponsored by Reps. Bob Goodlatte (R-VA) and Rick Boucher (D-VA), would update the U.S. Wire Act, which prohibits gambling over telephone wires, to cover use of the Internet to operate a gambling business.

The bill not only forbids a gambling business from accepting payments made by credit cards and electronic transfers, but also includes an enforcement mechanism to address gambling operations, located offshore, that use bank accounts in the U.S.

"For too long our children have been placed in harm's way as online gambling has been permitted to flourish into a $12 billion industry," Goodlatte said in a statement. "The Internet Gambling Prohibition Act brings the current ban against interstate gambling up to speed with the development of new technology."

Matching New Tech

The bill would allow federal, state, local, and tribal law-enforcement officials to seek help from Internet service providers to remove or disable access to Internet gambling sites that violate the act. In addition, the bill would boost the maximum prison term for a violation of the Wire Act to five years from two years.

Similar legislation has been introduced over the years, but has been thwarted consistently by notorious gambling lobbyist Jack Abramoff.

The U.S. Department of Justice has contended that companies offering online gaming to U.S. residents are in violation of existing federal laws, including the Wire Act, the Illegal Gaming Business Act, the Paraphernalia Act, and the Travel Act.

Despite the claims made by the Justice Department that Internet gaming is unlawful in the U.S., the lack of clear legislation regarding the practice has meant that there have been few legal cases brought against gambling operators.

In the MasterCard International case in 2002, a federal appellate court concluded that the Wire Act does not prohibit nonsports Internet gambling.

Online gaming company PartyGaming, which operates PartyPoker.com and StarluckCasino.com, has said that state and locals laws that prohibit or restrict online gaming and related services are a violation of the "dormant commerce clause" of the U.S. Constitution, which provides that state and local regulation of interstate activities is an impermissible restriction on interstate commerce.

The BBC has reported that the new legislation could run afoul of a World Trade Organization ruling last August that the U.S. cannot block offshore online gambling sites.

Place Your Bets

It is no secret that online wagering is a multibillion-dollar business, and that most of the illegal activity originates in the U.S. PartyGaming, which reported revenues in excess of $600 million in 2004, said 88 percent of that money came from the pockets of U.S. customers.

"Gambling is illegal in the U.S., and there are many different state laws regulating it, but all of the online gaming businesses are located overseas, where the government has no jurisdiction," said Yankee Group analyst Michael Goodman. "How will this new law be enforced? Will the government track the online activities of the millions of people involved in online gambling?"

Still, Rep. Goodlatte said that illegal online gambling adversely impacts the economy by draining dollars from the United States and serves as a vehicle for money laundering."

Gee, children at risk? Funny I've never seen 10 year olds with credit cards.

Oh yes, they don't want people doing online betting, but please keep playing those state lotteries, no matter how much of a ripoff they are. These people are such shakedown artists that it's not even funny. It's ok to play state lotteries, gamble on Indian reservations, or even go on trips to Las Vegas or Atlantic City, but you can't place an online bet because God forbid the government can't steal more of your money for their cronies. Of the two represenatives that introduced this bill, one is a Republican and one is a Democrat, so it's obvious that idiocy is present in both parties.

Maybe I'll go wager on some college basketball this weekend, I'm just damaging children's lives by doing it...